Georgia State edged by Troy

“This was an FCS football team a year ago that won one game,” Miles said. “We jumped into FBS and went toe-to-toe for 56 minutes and had every opportunity to win the game. We proved that this is going to be a very good conference for us, and we will be able to compete.”

The Panthers were led by quarterback Ronnie Bell, who tied a Georgia State school record with four touchdown passes, including two to Albert Wilson. He finished with seven receptions for 153 yards, but also had several drops. But his attempt to find Wilson for a third touchdown, possibly the game-winner, on second-and-12 at the 47-yard line resulted in an interception that changed the game.

Bell said he thought safety Chris Pickett was going to come up the field. Instead, Pickett dropped back and caught the pass at the 17-yard line, returning it to the 37 with 3:46 left. Bell completed 22 of 50 passes for 370 yards. He was sacked four times, all in the first half.

“We fought for all four quarters, except at the end,” Bell said. “If we fight every play, every minute, we’ll come out with a victory.”

The Trojans turned the turnover, Georgia State’s only one in the game, into the game-winning touchdown two plays later when Corey Robinson hit Chris Williams on a 54-yard scoring pass.

Linebacker Tarris Batiste said there was a mixup between him, a safety and a cornerback that resulted in Pickett finding a large hole in the zone along the sideline. It was a play that the Trojans ran successfully a few times, mostly finding Williams, who had four catches for 152 yards.

“We practiced that play, we knew that play, but at times … miscommunication,” Batiste said.

The play ended an exciting game in which neither team led by more than a touchdown.

Georgia State took its first lead, 21-14, on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Bell to Robert Davis with 7:09 left in the third quarter. The scoring play came after the Panthers’ Demarius Matthews blocked a punt on the 23-yard line that was recovered by Danny Williams on the 31. The defense was set up by a 52-yard punt by Matt Hubbard that went out at the 5-yard line, pinning Troy deep.

The Trojans answered with a long drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown run by Jordan Chunn with 1:09 left in the game.

The Panthers took the lead again, 28-21, early in the fourth quarter after Bell hit Wilson for 38 yards. Wilson ran a slant, caught the pass, turned back and outran the secondary. It was the first time this season that the Panthers held a lead in the fourth quarter. Georgia State’s passing game needed to be effective because its running game, for the third time this season, generated very little: 52 yards, including a 22-yard scramble by Bell to close the first half, on 26 carries.

But the Trojans answered with a 3-yard scoring run by Chunn on Troy’s next drive to tie the score. Troy, known as a passing team, used a read-option scheme to rush for 249 yards on 59 carries.

“We actually prepared for that, we just have to step it up and defend that better,” freshman defensive lineman Shawayne Lawrence said.

The Panthers executed well in most areas. The defense forced three turnovers, including an interception in the end zone by Batiste, a fumble recovery by Batiste and an interception by Jarrell Robinson. The special teams contributed with a blocked punt by Matthews and several precise punts by Hubbard. The defensive line added sacks by two freshmen, Lawrence and Mackendy Cheridor, who later forced a fumble.

But the team also made too many mistakes, such as the miscommunication on the Troy’s winning play, and dropped passes that they aren’t yet good enough to overcome.

“That was a really good college football game, and we just happened to come up on the short end of the stick,” Miles said. “I told the team, the hardest thing there is to do is to get over the hump when you haven’t been winning. When you jump up to the FBS level, it makes it even harder, and these kids are coming so close because of the hard work and focus they are putting in every day.”